Who is Basel Bassel Ebbadi? Iran-backed Hezbollah operative held in US, admits he wanted ‘to make a bomb’ in NY
In a shocking revelation, an illegal migrant from Lebanon admitted that he's a member of Hezbollah and wanted to enter the United States to manufacture a bomb.
In a shocking revelation, an illegal migrant from Lebanon admitted that he is a member of Hezbollah and wanted to enter the United States to manufacture a bomb.
A US border patrol team apprehended Basel Bassel Ebbadi, 22, on March 9 in El Paso, Texas, according to an exclusive NY POST report. During the interrogation, Ebbadi stated that his training centered on "jihad" and killing "people who were not Muslim."
He claimed to have received seven years of training from Lebanon-based terror group Hezbollah and to have worked as an active member guarding weapons facilities for another four years, reported The Post, citing internal ICE data.
On being asked what he was doing in the US, Ebbadi said: “I’m going to try to make a bomb," as per the Border Patrol document.
Hezbollah, a terror group backed by Iran, fired missiles into northern Israel in response to Hamas' October 7 attack, claiming lives of over 12 IDF soldiers and seven civilians.
According to ICE filings, Ebbadi, who reached the US without documents, said his original plan was to visit New York and then travel across the nation.
Claiming to have been robbed “with a knife” in Costa Rica, he acknowledged using a fictitious birthday and name in Panama, Sweden and Ecuador, where he said his father resides.
Following the interrogation, the authorities put him into isolation and scheduled his interview with the Tactical Terrorism Response Team (TTRT) for posing "terroristic threats to personnel."
According to internal documents, he was slated for deportation, but it was unclear which nation he would be repatriated to.
Illegal immigration becomes top issue in 2024 US elections
Addressing a rally in Dayton, Ohio on Saturday, former US President Donald Trump slammed the Biden administration over the surge of illegal migrants and migrant crimes, vowing to end every 'open border policy' if elected.
"My administration will end every open border policy of the Biden administration," Trump stated during the event. He further declared that the migrants who are guilty of crimes are "not people."
"I don't know if you call them people," he said.
Also Read: ‘I wish these were jokes’: Joe Biden mocks Trump's age, mental fitness at Washington press dinner
Amid the surge in illegal migrants, the US has made at least 59 arrests so far in 2024, revealed federal data.
Stressing on the situation at the US-Mexico border, Trump asserted, "We're going to fix it again."
Meanwhile, Trump and Biden have secured the Republican and Democratic presidential nominations, respectively, setting up a rematch in November.
